


Why?

by AceVII



Series: Quarantine writing challenge [3]
Category: Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Fives' thoughts, Sad Ending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-21
Updated: 2020-11-21
Packaged: 2021-03-09 22:14:43
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,385
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27613333
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AceVII/pseuds/AceVII
Summary: For a second before he's killed, Fives thinks a simple question that he's asked himself over and over again."Why?"
Series: Quarantine writing challenge [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2013214
Kudos: 1





	Why?

From the moment Five was taken out of the cloning vats and shoved into training he was curious. He was more curious than his squad mates ever were, and probably more reckless. Everyday he found something new and he'd ask a simple question. "Why?" Why did it do that? Why did it move that way? Why was it made? Why do we do this? Day in and day out there was always at least one why question he asked.

The long necks did their best to quiet his questions, whether it meant answering or ignoring was besides the point, but in the end somehow Fives always got an answer. Sometime's he'd go to Echo who was all brainy and kriff and he'd know the answer. Other times he'd just keep bothering different long necks till one of them gave him a believable response. Once he even went up to someone he later learned was a jedi to ask. She seemed nice enough and answered many questions for him that day.

After failing their final training session AGAIN, Fives was in a tizzy. He was angry, frustrated, disappointed (mainly in himself) but most of all confused. Why couldn't they get this down? They'd done it what seemed a hundred times now, but seem kept failing. Even better they have a dumb nickname now. The Domino Squad, because once one falls they all fall. It irked him to no end. It also wasn't helping that Echo and Hevy just started another argument! Great, and now here comes Bric with another degrading lecture. Not even that, they were just excuses to make fun of them now. Why couldn't they get this? Why was this kriffing guy even here?

After a newfound spark, Fives and his batch mates went sent out to an outpost on the Rishi Moon. It was boring. Obviously, Hevy agreed with him, but much more verbally. Poor Echo, he was only trying to follow orders and make sure their first time off of Kamino was a success. Fives felt a twinge of guilt, but he also was a restless clone, and that feeling overpowered his guilt. Of course it all went to kriff! Why wouldn't it? Commando droid attacked the station, killing their sergeant and Droidbait...that hurt deeper than Fives expected. Why him?

The rest of the so called Domino Squad made it outside before Cutup was kiffing eaten by a giant eel. Why damnit?! He was watching his batch mates die one by one! Luckily they ran into Captain Rex and Commander Cody, and Fives thought they had a chance. He was wrong.

They had lost Hevy, the di'kut just had to be heroic. His only batch mate left was Echo, and by the Force he was going to protect him if it was the last thing he did. Why take them away so soon? His brothers, the ones he trained and graduated with since he was young. Why were they made just to be disposed of?

He had failed. As he stared into the flames engulfing the ship Echo had just run into, all Fives could think was that he had failed. He was the last of the Dominos. The last to survive. For how long though? How long till he fell too? Forgotten by all but his brothers. The jedi never understood when a brother died how much it hurt them, they just saw it as another casualty and to move on. He heard General Obi Wan urging them to keep moving, somehow not sensing, or not caring the pain Fives felt as he stared at Echo's blacked helmet.

Fives couldn't remember much after that, but when he got to his barracks after the mission, he remembers crying. He had never really cried before, but this was different. He felt so alone, even though other brothers surrounded him, he felt like he was a single speck alone in the vast universe. Why Echo? Why had it not been him instead? Why hadn't he tried harder, or done something to stop his vod?

Umbara was hell. General Krell was a tyrant. Rex wasn't doing anything. Fives and Hardcase decided to take things into their own hands, Jesse coming along too. They were going to take Umbaran fighters straight to the main reactors of the supply ships and blow it. Screw Krell and his orders, they were wrong.

Of course, they might have been wrong too...Fives thought as they sped away, leaving Hardcase behind. Self-sacrificing idiot. They didn't have time to grieve before they were sentenced to a court martial then execution. This was so wrong on so many levels, even Rex knew it was by the look on his face. He looked up at the line of brothers about to kill him and his breath hitched when his eyes landed on Kix. That was messed up. Even Fives knew how hard Kix took deaths, and now he'd have to deal with their deaths without Jesse there to comfort him. He closed his eyes as the count down started. Why damnit?

Turns out his brothers had more sense that that though and aimed away on purpose. He had felt relieved until Krell sent out an order to stop Umbarans in their amor, which was sketchy as it sounded. Rex came back later and told them exactly what had happened before releasing them. Fives doesn't think he's ever felt that type of fury rage in him. He felt so furious, that he was almost positive General Skywalker could sense it.

After the entire thing was over was when Fives truly reflected on everything. Hardcase...the near death by brothers...the damn slaughter. Why did the world seem to hate him and his brothers? Even the fact they were put in the hands of that monster was enough to say the universe looked down on clones. He felt guilt rise up when Hardcase slipped into his mind, and found the urge to throw up strong. Why didn't he think it through a little more? Maybe then Hardcase would still be here.

Tup killed a jedi, there were chips in him and his brothers heads, and he was a wanted man. Life seemed to love playing tricks with him. Fives was on the run, trying to find someway at all to meet with Rex or the general or both. He found himself waiting at a storage building after convincing Kix he wasn't mental. He just hoped his vod had been true to his word and had contacted the captain and general. 

He got his answer soon enough when they both stepped into his trap per say. It wasn't that he didn't trust them, but he couldn't take any risks and he had to be able to talk. He tried to form the words into a complete sentence, tried to warn his vod, but his mind was growing fuzzy. Before he knew what was happening the doors to the building opened and yelling rang out. On instinct he grabbed Rex's pistol, but it obviously gave the wrong picture as he felt a searing pain in his chest.

Fives looked down and saw a burning hole in his chest, and before he knew it, he was on the ground struggling to breath. He felt arms around him, lifting him up till Rex's face came into view. He choked out some words he doesn't remember, hopefully giving Rex a little warning that would go a long way. He couldn't stand the idea of his vod becoming mindless droids. As his vision started to fade in and out he asked a familiar question. Why? However, this time he had an answer.

Why did the world hate him and his vod? Constantly making it hard, constantly killing them in brutal ways. Why did he have to be made like this? Made to die and be forgotten like the countless brothers he watched perish in this war. The answer was simple. Life is unfair, especially to a clone. They were made to be killed and used till they dropped. Fives had always envisioned what his life might be like after the war, but now he knew those were just silly hopes and dreams. Why? Because no clone was ever suppose to make it out of the war, just die in it. 


End file.
